Instagram Adds New Features to Reels as TikTok Ban Looms
With TikTok on track to be banned from U.S. app stores starting on Sunday, Instagram is adding new features to Reels, its video-based feature that's modeled after TikTok.
Going forward, there will be a new Reels feed that includes videos that your friends have liked or commented on, so you can see what your friends have watched and what they like. Your friends will also be able to see the videos that you have liked, which is something to be aware of.
In this new Reels feed filled with friend recommendations, there will be an option to "start a conversation" with someone over a reel that they've liked.
"We want Instagram to not only be a place where you consume entertaining content, but one where you connect over that content with friends," Instagram head Adam Mosseri said in a video announcing the change.
Instagram used to have a dedicated Activity feed that offered up this information, but it was removed several years ago. It is not yet known if Instagram plans to provide an opt-out for the new feed.
The new feed is rolling out in a handful of countries right now, with Instagram set to expand it in the future.
Instagram competitor TikTok could be unavailable to use starting on Sunday, which is the day U.S. app stores will be prohibited from distributing the app. Instagram could absorb some displaced TikTok users if that ends up happening.
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